March 2006 - Posts
Tim has hit the nail on the head. The Origami Tablet will suffer the same fate of the Portable Media Center devices if it doesn't have battery life and cost less that $1000.
For me I might use the Origami for notetaking and watching video.
I have tried the Archos AV-700 for entertainment purposes and I ended up getting a Dell 700m since it cost almost the same with more functionality. I think I would end up with the same dilemma here as well, since most laptops at the $1000 price point have faster processors and can accomodate more RAM and hard disks.
I think Toshiba is closer to the mark here with their wireless screen.
What I would actually like to see is a full functional PC that can function as a tablet, but dock with the keyboard and the cdrom with an additional battery. Sort of like Motion computing meets Toshiba WIFI screen.
So in a nutshell I would be ok with the 2-3 hours battery life when disconnected from the base, but I could dock and have my 4-6 hours. I would also be ok with additional weight.
Maybe DualCor should look at designing something like this. Since they have the dual processor model, you could run on the PPC processor when you are in PPC tablet mode, and switch to Windows table mode when docked. The best of both worlds...
Anyway to answer the question, if the device can accomodate 1-2GB RAM, have a Core Solo or Duo CPU and last > 3 hours, and cost $800-$1000, I think it would be very tempting...
Toshiba is still not shipping their M400 with the UXGA screen. =( What is the deal! Don't they want my $$$?
Tim talked about this the other day...
Still waiting...
It seems that Verizon is overwhelmed with orders for phones. It took them approximately two weeks to get my XV6700 out the door. Hopefully I will have it in my hand tomorrow. (fingers crossed). Although I was against Verizon's service because I thought it was too expensive, it seems that my company has a good discount for service and the equipment that I couldn't ignore.
Now as I wait I have been noticing that there are many reviews. Some rave and some are luke warm like the PC Magazine review. This is mainly due to Verizon's nack to turn off useful features like tethering and simultaneous phone/wifi.
Well I am sure ;) there are work arounds for this.
To be continued...
You know everyone talks about convergence from a device perspective. I would really like someone to start thinking of convergence from a power perspective, DC power adapters specifically. I would like to see a universal power hub with a universal connection, something like the I-GO, but from a different angle. The device should have some two-way communication with the power supply to negotiate the power requirements and voltage. The connector should be universal or at least the intermediary connector should be universal. I would envision the device similar to an USB hub where you could plug in cables directly to it and power/charge your portable device.
I guess the product power accessory market would be blown to bits if this ever came to pass. I must have owned 100+ power supplies for all the gadgets I have ever owned. You name the device type and I probably have it plugged in somewhere in the house, from cellphones, laptops, external cdroms, cameras to kids toys. Some devices even require three adapters, home, travel/work and the car.
Now with the Origami announcement around the corner I may have to get another adapter….arrgh!
I wish that Nikola Tesla, whose work has brought us A/C power and the Radio, was allowed to purse his free energy project. His idea of broadcasting electrical power (magnifying transformer) would have changed the mobile device world as well as removed all those unsightly power lines on the street. For me I would be free of all of those annoying power adapters that in some cases weigh more than the device they support.
Hmm…Free Energy, I don’t think the idea was very popular in his time...I don't think things have change now...I can dream…Oh-Well.